The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-04/12/2000 DISCLAIMER: Baptist Press should be credited for any reprinted stories that originate with BP. Suggested credit line: Reprinted from Baptist Press (www.baptistpress.com), news service of the Southern Baptist Convention. Please note that Baptist Press periodically carries stories from other sources by permission. Individuals interested in reprinting non-BP stories should contact the entity where the story originated to seek reprint permission. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Talks under way over Mormon lawsuit against cult-watchers' Internet site by Don Hinkle Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday SALT LAKE CITY (BP)--A battle over a copyright infringement lawsuit -- with ramifications for the Internet's informational content, First Amendment rights to freedom of religion and the secretive nature of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- may soon be settled out of court.

An attorney for the Mormon Church and one of those involved with the Utah Lighthouse Ministry of Salt Lake City have expressed optimism that negotiations are moving toward a settlement of a lawsuit filed by the Mormon Church against the evangelical ministry for printing -- on its Internet site last July -- portions of an unpublished, copyrighted Mormon book.

On their Utah Lighthouse Ministry's website, www.utlm.org, Sandra and Jerald Tanner posted the excerpts explaining how people may have their names removed from Mormon Church rolls. The effort was part of the cult-watcher ministry's primary mission of exposing heresy pertaining to the Mormon Church and assisting people who want to leave Mormonism. The Tanners obtained the book from an anonymous source who left a copy -- contained on a computer disc -- in their mailbox.

The legal struggle began in October when the Mormon Church, through its Intellectual Reserves, Inc., subsidiary that holds the rights to its intellectual property, sued the Tanners, alleging copyright infringement.

A U.S. district judge subsequently issued a temporary restraining order, a ruling that required the Tanners to remove the pages from their Internet site. The Tanners complied, but later posted an e-mail message from a reader containing Internet addresses where the entire book -- "Church Handbook of Instructions, Book 1, Stake Presidencies and Bishoprics" that deals with church disciplinary procedures -- could be read.

The Mormon Church, in response, asked the judge to order the Tanners to remove the addresses on the theory they were encouraging others to view and make illegal copies of the handbook pages.

The judge ordered the addresses removed -- igniting a fierce cyberspace debate over whether the ruling restricted the freedom of Internet users from linking one website to another.

"The Internet is all about linking," said Jeffrey Kuester, a copyright lawyer who practices cyberspace law in Atlanta. The judge's restraining order could have "a chilling impact on anyone who wants to tell someone else where something can be found on the Web."

But T.R. Halvorson, a Sidney, Mont., attorney specializing in cyberspace issues, said the order should not be viewed with alarm, that it is specifically targeted at Web users who post unpublished, copyrighted material or addresses where such material can be viewed and distributed even further via links on the Web.

This judge "is no threat to free speech," Halvorson said in a study devoted to the case published in March. "[The judge] is not going to destroy the Web as we know it. You are not infringing copyrights when you browse copyrighted material posted to the Web by the copyright holders."

In this case, the Tanners were not the copyright holders of the book and the Mormons had not made the book available, he noted.

However, the Tanners' Salt Lake City attorney, Brian Barnard, said the information posted by the Tanners had been circulating on the Internet for six months and that they removed it as soon as they were contacted. Barnard said the legal action by the Mormon Church has more to do with the mission of Utah Lighthouse than it does with anything else.

"The Tanners have been critics of the LDS Church for some time," Barnard said. " I think they are being singled out for this litigation. The New York Times put up URLs [Internet addresses] with links to the same information as my clients put up. The Salt Lake City Tribune published the same URLs and neither The Tribune nor The New York Times is being sued. So it appears this litigation is based more on a theological dispute."

Other observers question the merit of the original lawsuit, arguing that most copyright infringement cases involve things like selling or distributing unauthorized copies of computer software. In such cases, the argument goes, the copyright infringement reduces the copyright holder's capacity to make a profit on the copyrighted material. But the LDS has no plans to make a profit off the publication involved in the Tanner lawsuit, leaving theorists to ask, "How does the free distribution of a small part of it hurt the LDS?"

Neither side in the legal battle would divulge how the issues might be settled through their ongoing negotiations.

"There has been some discussion between the parties that may lead to a settlement," Berne Broadbent, an attorney for the Mormon Church, told Baptist Press April 6. Broadbent said he did not know when a settlement might be reached.

Sandra Tanner said she thinks the Mormons "just want to get rid of this whole thing" because allies interested in protecting the Internet's freedom to share information are lining up to join in the legal fray. Indeed the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit group that studies cyberspace freedom of expression issues, has promised to get involved in the case by filing its own brief expressing its reservations about the restriction imposed on the Tanners from the restraining order.

"We will not pay any money or admit to any guilt, but we will agree to destroy the disc that has the book," Tanner told Baptist Press April 6.

"By them going after us, they have created a backlash by people who would have never thought of it. It has been a boost to our Internet site and brought many people to us that might otherwise would not have known about us."

While the legal battle may soon end, debates over the secretive operations of the Mormon Church and individuals' First Amendment rights to freedom of religion will linger.

Tanner, who was featured in a video explaining Mormon beliefs issued prior to the 1998 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Salt Lake City by the SBC's North American Mission Board, said Utah Lighthouse Ministry's website was established to let people know that "the Mormon religion is false, that Joseph Smith is a false prophet and that they are in danger of jeopardizing their eternal welfare."

"In other churches you would have been given a manual when you joined that would have laid out their church discipline policies," she said. "But in Mormonism, you are not given a church handbook that explains their discipline processes and, in fact, they are kept secret from you.

"In the Mormon Church they never drop you from the rolls no matter how inactive you have been. I have people writing us all the time, asking what they have to do to get [the LDS] off their backs."

The case also raises questions about the First Amendment rights of those wishing to leave Mormonism.

The LDS was criticized last year after some people claimed they received harassing phone calls from the cult for writing letters requesting they be removed from church rolls.

"This type of response to a letter from a member of a church asked to be removed from a church's membership rolls is clearly an unconstitutional attack on the freedom of religious rights of those who wrote the letters," editorialized William Tibbits in the University of Utah independent student newspaper, The Daily Utah Chronicle.

"Freedom of religion, like all rights protected in the Bill of Rights, is a right for individuals, not organizations. This means that freedom of religion exists not for churches but for the members of those churches.

"In the context of the LDS Church, this means that people who wish to leave the LDS Church should be able to write a letter stating that wish and be left alone."

Tanner said people outside the Mormon Church are amazed they have a handbook that they would hide.

"For the first time people realized there was a handbook," she said. "Suppressing something creates more interest. I don't understand why the church didn't have an open policy to begin with."
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Technological opportunities get Midwestern trustees' approval by Tammi Reed Ledbetter Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday KANSAS CITY, Mo. (BP)--On-line learning opportunities were among various steps to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary approved by trustees during their April 10-11 meeting. Interim President Mike Whitehead heralded the Internet initiatives as one day providing Computer-Assisted Seminary Education (CASE) "in Judea, Samaria and the remotest parts of the earth."

When it debuts in July, CASE will permit students to see and hear a video stream of the professor's classroom lecture, while also permitting dialog with the professor by email or chat-rooms. Students may complete some entire courses by the Internet, up to 30 hours toward a master of divinity degree, without coming to campus. Other courses will include one week of intensive classroom learning, supplemented by Internet-based studies before and after.

The classroom portion of these courses will be offered on the Kansas City, Mo., campus and in other satellite locations where Midwestern has extensions. Internet courses will not be limited to students seeking ministerial degrees, but also to men and women who want to improve their knowledge of God's Word. A $40 per credit hour technology fee will be added to normal tuition rates for all courses taken through the CASE program.

Praising the work of the seminary's Distance Learning Task Force chaired by Old Testament professor Gary Smith, Whitehead thanked trustees for making this a funding priority in the budget. He encouraged trustees to spread the word that "at long last, we'll be broadcasting this teaching" by what he called "a world-class faculty" in order to "train people for the work of the ministry around the world over the Internet."

Trustees also heard a report from presidential search committee chairman Carl Weiser who told of the development of a profile of the type of man being sought for the position, after receiving input from faculty, staff and students. Weiser said members have received resumes, deliberated through monthly conference calls and interviewed several candidates.

"We want to find the man God has prepared for this seminary for this time. We're not in a hurry," Weiser said, adding, "I know you want us to be. We already know God knows all the answers and has him prepared, so we're trying to get ourselves in a place that we hear what God has to say."

Weiser reiterated, "We're looking for a man that can lead us into the future who has a vision for the Midwest and the work here and a sense of God's calling to this place."

Trustees approved a budget for the upcoming year totaling $4,774,182, an increase of $188,997 over the current year. A 4 percent cost of living increase is factored into the budget for salaried employees.

In other matters, trustees elected to the faculty two men who have served as appointed professors since 1998 -- Kenneth D. Keathley as assistant professor of theology and philosophy and Michael D. McMullen, assistant professor of church history.

Donald S. Whitney was promoted to associate professor of spiritual formation and the contract of W. Buswell McNutt was renewed as appointed assistant professor of biblical studies. The title of associate missions professor Ronald D. Rogers was expanded to include evangelism. In addition, a six-month sabbatical was granted for pastoral care professor Paul Carlisle.

In honor of church music professor A.L. "Pete" Butler, trustees named his arrangement of Fanny Crosby's hymn "Redeemed" as the official seminary song.

The board approved reorganization and restructuring of various seminary activities and offices as proposed by the interim president, applauding steps to increase effectiveness and efficiency. Changes were announced regarding:

-- distance learning to incorporate the CASE program, drawing upon previously approved capital funds of up to $100,000 for start-up costs, initial operating expenses and expansion.

-- extension center adjustments deemed necessary by the interim president, including offering CASE studies as an alternative delivery system.

-- reopening of the Child Development Center building for childcare ministry to student and community families as a training program for children's education. Assigned to academic affairs, the action authorizes the interim president to spend up to $30,000 from capital funds as a start-up budget, with progress to be reported in the fall trustee meeting, and a balanced budget proposed next spring.

-- designation of the Morton-Seats Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology for the joint display and academic study of the collections of former professors William Morton and Lavell Seats in a location to be determined by the interim president, utilizing up to $20,000 in capital needs funds for remodeling and equipment.

-- modification of the operation and administration of the Center for Biblical Revival by the interim president while reclassifying Jim Elliff as consultant of the center. In a letter to trustees, Elliff requested the changes as he follows the Lord's leading for a broader ministry off campus while still maintaining an advisory relationship with the new president.

-- negotiation by the interim president with Briarcliff Development Company for strategic planning services.

Whitehead expressed appreciation for payment of the largest pledge to the seminary capital campaign. Charles and Doris Kelley contributed $100,000 following the recent sale of their house in Beaumont, Texas. Now living in DeSoto, Texas, Kelley was elected a trustee in 1992 and continues in his second term.

Whitehead praised the "passion, desire and drive" of Kelley in "caring so much about the school" that he prayerfully committed to attend the spring board meeting in spite of his battle with cancer and his wife's recovery from pneumonia. "That's the right attitude toward doing the Lord's business," the interim president said.

In a letter accompanying his check, Kelley said, "I am still excited over our First Step Toward Tomorrow campaign which will help us get the buildings we desperately need."

Trustees voted to suspend their rules in order to re-elect the entire slate of current officers to a second term, including chairman Carl Weiser of Lynchburg, Va.; vice chairman Bob Collins of Blue Springs, Mo.; second vice chairman Tony Mattia of Wamego, Kan.; and secretary-treasurer Gwen Newman of Winder, Ga.

In making the re-election nominations, Oklahoma trustee Reagan Bradford expressed gratitude for the strong administrative and faculty support of the seminary, urging the board to re-elect current officers as a public expression of affirmation of their leadership. Board members approved his motion without dissent. Trustee Buster Brown later affirmed Weiser's leadership as "God's man for this school for this hour."

In an earlier proposal, the board approved a resolution expressing gratitude to "all Southern Baptists who have faithfully supported our students, faculty and staff, especially during the past six months, both by praying and by giving to the Cooperative Program." Gratitude also was expressed in the statement to leaders of other SBC agencies, particularly the Council of Seminary Presidents. "We pledge our cooperation with all of our partners in the harvest as we seek to exercise our fiduciary responsibility to provide policy governance for this institution," the statement read.

The board named a committee to respond to the SBC Executive Committee inquiry into "cooperative endeavors" by SBC agencies with a report due in September. Members include Weiser, Collins and Missouri trustees Kent Cochran and Ralph Sawyer.

A mission statement that elaborates the purpose of the seminary was approved without dissent. It serves as the standard by which accreditors will hold the seminary accountable in an upcoming self-study. The board also heard a report of three master of arts degrees to be offered in the fall, pending ATS approval, with specialization in biblical archaeology, biblical languages and counseling.

Tuition rates were discussed, but no increase was mandated. A motion gave the administration discretion to adjust tuition rates during the next two years, with trustee executive committee concurrence. Trustees also authorized the administration to raise or remove the flat rate cap on tuition currently set at $700.

A facility usage policy was introduced to clarify use of seminary facilities by outside groups. Space is made available to churches on a temporary basis of up to six months. "While we want to accommodate and facilitate churches that want space, we don't want an official seminary church," Whitehead said. "We want churches to get established and not become dependent upon seminary space."

The board also authorized full participation in the Stafford Student Loan Program and other government-sponsored financial aid programs.
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Whitehead says new initiatives to 'unleash resurrection power' by Tammi Reed Ledbetter Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday KANSAS CITY, Mo. (BP)--Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's interim president, Mike Whitehead, in his April 10 report to trustees, drew parallels from the New Testament Book of Acts' first chapter to describe the transition time at the seminary.

Just as the apostles waited expectantly for a new movement of God after the resurrection of Jesus, Whitehead said seminary leaders expect God to unleash "resurrection power" in surprising new ways, through new people, new technology and new opportunities to proclaim the "changeless, timeless truth of God's Word."

Announcing a new Internet-based program beginning in July, Computer Assisted Seminary Education (CASE), Whitehead said Midwestern will begin "teaching in Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth," wherever students have Internet access around the world, offering up to 30 hours of course work toward a master of divinity degree. CASE will permit students to see and hear a video stream of a professor's classroom lecture while also permitting dialog with the professor by email or chat-rooms.

The first chapter of Acts also describes dependency upon God in times of "personnel changes," as the disciples chose a new apostle, Whitehead recounted. Similarly, the seminary must wait on God to reveal "his man for the presidency" and for other key staffing decisions.

Noting how the disciples studied the Scriptures and prayed before proceeding, Whitehead urged the seminary family to pray for the search committee as they apply biblical criteria to seek "a man who has walked with God daily and who has witnessed resurrection power."

Whitehead addressed other personnel changes, including the retirement of Harold Poage as vice president for institutional advancement and the designation of capital resources director Bill Foil to serve as Poage's replacement in an interim capacity. Assistant Christian education professor Robert Vaughan is serving as interim vice president of business affairs, as well as interim registrar following the recent resignation of Stephen Prescott.

Whitehead also reported on the upcoming retirement of church music professor A.L. "Pete" Butler, the transition of Jim Elliff as resident consultant for the Midwestern Center for Biblical Revival to consultant status in August and the "promotion to heaven" of senior missions professor Lavell Seats who died March 16.

Saying, "God will call some of us to stay here and keep working, while God will call some to be a part of new beginnings" elsewhere, Whitehead announced the resignation of Jim Cogdill as vice president for academic affairs to pursue evangelistic and church growth opportunities. Cogdill will "make a move that follows his heart and call and giftedness in equipping people for the work of evangelism," Whitehead said.

Old Testament professor Gary Smith, who served as interim dean at Bethel Seminary, will fill that role at Midwestern, Whitehead announced.

"I am excited about the future for all of the men and women of the Lord who have been serving here," Whitehead said. "I believe Midwestern Seminary will break loose with the power of God through godly leaders if we walk daily with the resurrected Jesus. The world can't stop us."

During a trustee banquet, Whitehead expressed appreciation for payment of the largest pledge to the seminary capital campaign. Charles and Doris Kelley contributed $100,000 following the recent sale of their house in Beaumont, Texas. Now living in DeSoto, Texas, Kelley was elected a trustee in 1992 and continues in his second term.
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Despite mission trip tragedy, church plans to reach out again by Bob Nigh Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday EDMOND, Okla. (BP)--"We've had a lot of experiences, being a church of about 5,000 people, but no doubt this has been the most difficult, the most challenging experience our church has faced," pastor Dennis Newkirk said of the death of 15-year-old Marci Wintz during a church-sponsored mission trip.

Wintz was killed and another student injured March 12 when the church van they were riding in hit a guardrail and flipped over in San Antonio, Tex. Wintz was one of 135 youth and adult sponsors from Henderson Hills Baptist Church in Edmond, Okla., who were headed to Matamoros, Mexico, for a spring break mission trip.

The driver, a 40 year old chaperone, was not cited in the crash.

Newkirk, who addressed a news conference two days after the tragedy, said, "We will continue to go on mission trips. We have done this for years, and our kids don't want us to stop."

The pastor flew to San Antonio immediately after the accident and made the decision to cancel the mission trip.

Two students who joined Newkirk at the news conference at the Oklahoma church said they nevertheless would eagerly go on another mission trip to share their faith.

"This has made me want to get out on the front lines for God even more," said 18-year-old Michelle Bruner, "and makes me want to change this world, because so many people don't have the hope that we have ... as the body of Christ."

"I know all of us have been changed for the better, both in our relationships with each other and in our relationship with God," said 15-year-old Matt Mitzner, who was also passenger in the van. "We all want to live for him even more."

Mitzner described Wintz as "a beautiful, sweet girl. She had a great heart for God and had a great relationship with her parents and with every friend she ever made."

Wintz's parents have requested a memorial fund for their daughter -- the Marci Wintz Memorial Mission Fund -- be established at Henderson Hills, with the proceeds to help fund future mission trips.

Both Bruner and Mitzner credited their faith in God and his help to the youth group and members of the church in general in dealing with the aftermath of the accident.

"I think that, through this, all of us have realized how short life really is, and it has made us cling to God, knowing that we don't have to mourn like those who have no hope," Bruner said. "We have God to cling to, and he's the only one who's going to get us through this."

"This definitely has touched my heart," Mitzner added. "It has showed me how, through someone's death, many can learn about life and live for God, knowing he has a plan for all of our lives."

"It's really amazing that God has given us all a peace," Bruner said. "And it's a peace that comes only from him ... even right after the accident, we all had a peace, knowing that he was holding our hands, and that he was carrying us through this time."

During the accident, Mitzner recounted, "It was like God gave us a calm spirit as we swerved back and forth maybe four or five times, and there was no screaming or anything. It was very quiet, and then, God gave the guys in the van peace of mind to be able to help everybody get out of the van after it happened." Wintz was later pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.

Donations to the Marci Wintz Memorial Mission Fund may be mailed to Henderson Hills Baptist Church, 2300 S. Boulevard, Edmond, OK 73013.
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Jews for Jesus' Passover program offers Jewish symbolism insights by Stacey Hamby Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (BP)--It's a familiar verse to Lord's Supper services in churches across the nation:

"Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to His disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then He took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:26-28).

But many Christians do not understand the symbols Jesus used to communicate the message of his pending death and resurrection. Jews for Jesus is seeking to change that through its "Christ in the Passover" programs, which are scheduled in various Baptist churches across the country. Jews begin this year's eight-day Passover observance April 20.

"We bring this program into churches to help us bridge understanding between the Jewish Passover feast, the Last Supper, and help Christians see how our beliefs are so rooted in Jewish traditions," said Susan Pearlman of the Jews for Jesus organization based in San Francisco.

"When you understand some of the original traditions, you can hear his words with a lot more meaning," Pearlman said.

She offered this example: "In Passover, the specific piece of unleavened bread Jesus took and broke is called the bread of affliction. And when Jesus said, '... this cup is poured out for you,' he took the third cup in the Passover -- the one taken immediately after supper -- called the cup of redemption. His disciples knew that; he was signaling his act of redeeming mankind to come.

"All these things add real meaning as to how Jesus took these symbols that God had prepared thousands of years earlier so that he could give them their fuller meaning in his death and resurrection," she explained.

Those symbolic meanings impressed Roger Johnson, pastor of First Baptist Church, Villa Ridge, Mo., which hosted a Christ in the Passover program April 2.

"A lot of people don't connect the New Testament and Old Testament, and this program showed pretty clear pictures of Christ in the Old Testament," Johnson said. "It created more interest in studying the Old Testament."

Rick Hedger, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, Neosho, Mo., said the Christ in the Passover service April 9 drew a crowd about one-third larger than normal.

"The church just sat spellbound for about an hour as Efraim Goldstein went through his presentation," Hedger said. "It was easy for me to offer an invitation because he really emphasized the third cup of the Passover -- the cup of redemption."

This kind of deeper understanding -- along with evangelism -- are the main goals of Jews for Jesus, Pearlman said.

"This is a time when Christians can feel comfortable inviting their Jewish friends to the program," she said. "Our program is to present Jesus -- Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, and we show this with a very visual demonstration."

Though the Christ in the Passover program for churches lasts about 45 minutes, Pearlman said a traditional Passover meal in an Orthodox Jewish home takes about four hours.

Hedger said he recommends the Christ in the Passover program for other churches.

"I have no problem inviting Jews for Jesus back in the future," he said. "I recommend it just for the experience of having it because most Christians only know about the Passover from the Book of Exodus and never have read the Haggadah (the book used in the ceremony).

"I've always wanted to see the Passover meal in practice, and this was our first time to have them come. It fulfilled a dream of mine."

Jews for Jesus conducts the Christ in the Passover program year-round. They also do a demonstration in the fall for the Feast of the Tabernacle. More information can be obtained by phoning (415) 864-2600 or at their website, www.jewsforjesus.org.
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Inerrant Scripture, joy in Jesus vital in pulpit, Stafford declares by Greg Gay Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday KANSAS CITY, Mo. (BP)--Be "men of God" by staying true to preaching the Bible, evangelist Bill Stafford told his seminary audience.

A preacher's accountability is not to men but to God when ministering his Word, said Stafford, of Chattanooga, Tenn., an evangelist for more than 30 years.

"The greatest thing that can happen in your life is to live in the awesome awareness that you do not have to answer to anybody, but you only have to be answerable and accountable to a holy God," Stafford preached in a message from 2 Timothy 4:2-5 at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Mo.

Those who do not have an appetite for the Bible and for the preaching of it might not be born again, Stafford stated.

"Appetite comes with birth," the evangelist emphatically told the April 6 chapel audience. "When I got saved, I received an appetite for God. I received a hunger to know him and walk with him. The only people who don't love the Bible and the preaching of the Word are those that have no appetite because they have no birth."

Preach God's Word accurately and with excitement, Stafford exhorted. Pastors are preaching the King's message, just as a town crier would announce a message from a king, he continued.

"This is the King's message," Stafford shouted about the Bible. "This is the infallible, inerrant Word of God. What good is that if all I've got is intellectual truth that doesn't get to my heart and exalts out of me? I can't get over that I'm preaching the King's message."

His emphasis on emotionalism, Stafford noted, is on an encounter with Jesus through Scripture and not just through charismatic experience.

"I'm talking about an honest obsession where Jesus overwhelms you with the Word," Stafford said, "and so overwhelms you that when you preach, it just comes out not just as expository truth, but as truth, to the glory of God."

The most pressing issue in Southern Baptist circles today is not inerrancy, Stafford observed. "The battle is extra-biblical revelation."

He illustrated this by recounting a conversation he had with a Southern Baptist pastor who was using the manifestations of tongues, holy laughter and slaying in the spirit in his revival crusades. Stafford asked the preacher to show him the scriptural basis for such teachings.

"Here comes the statement he said that shook me," Stafford said. "'When God speaks to me, if it's not in the Bible, it is still the Word of God.'"

Avoid any teaching that lacks scriptural backing, Stafford counseled. "I'm bound by the Word of God," he said. "If God didn't say it, its garbage."

Rebellion against authority, Stafford said, is the reason for the surge in interest in extra-biblical revelation in various churches.

"This is a nation in rebellion against authority. So when it comes to the Word of God, they aren't going to listen to you preach. Why? Because they are not going to bow to anything. They are not going to get saved until they bow to his authority."

Allow the power of God, from a correct understanding of Scripture, to empower preaching, Stafford urged.

"Students, God's not going to use you because you're smart. He will use you if you love him supremely, are consumed with his Word, preach from the overflow, and can't wait for people to hear about Jesus, and how he overwhelmed you."
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Pauline Gore receives degree from Union Univ. at age 87 by Sara Horn Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Union University awarded a bachelor of arts degree to Pauline LaFon Gore, the 87-year-old mother of Vice President Al Gore, at an April 10 private luncheon in Nashville, Tenn.

Pauline Gore is a former student at the 2,500-student Baptist-affiliated university, which was founded in 1823. Gore also is a native of Jackson, Tenn., where Union is located.

Al Gore attended the non-political event in honor of his mother and credited Union with starting his mother on the road to her life's accomplishments. Also in attendance were the Tennessee Baptist Convention's president, Jerry Tidwell, and executive director-treasurer, James Porch, who gave the benediction.

"As long as I live," Al Gore said, "I will be grateful to Union University for starting my mother on her path in life to higher education, and for granting her the diploma she first worked so hard for 70 years ago.

"She has earned this diploma through a shining lifetime of love, leadership and service. I'm very grateful to you and I appreciate the honor you have extended to my mother today," Gore said.

Pauline Gore, a member of New Salem Baptist Church in Carthage, Tenn., attended Union for two years, 1931-33, before entering Vanderbilt University's law school in Nashville. For many years, she had expressed disappointment at not being able to complete her four years at Union and earn a degree.

At the time she attended Union, her blind sister Thelma also was enrolled, and she took notes and read assignments for both herself and her sister. After two years, she entered law school at a time when students were allowed to enroll in law school or medical school after only two years of undergraduate study.

"We are pleased that Union was able to serve as a foundation for Pauline LaFon Gore's later academic success," said Union President David S. Dockery. "Through her investment in her family and her involvement in civic affairs, she has served our state and our nation. Union University is pleased to have the opportunity, as part of this non-political event, to bestow a long-awaited degree in recognition of Mrs. Gore's years of service to Tennessee and the country."
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Biker church is where Jesus can 'clean you up on the inside' by Sherri Brown Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BP)--As the general manager of a supply house, much of Gary Davis' job was delivering equipment. On his route he routinely delivered to three different shops -- each owned by one of three brothers.

"One brother drank from lunch on, the second brother was rough and the third brother was a total mess," Davis remembers.

One day Davis delivered equipment to the youngest brother and was surprised to see that he was clean and alert. A few weeks later when the man was still "clean and shiny and bright," Davis asked, "What happened to you?"

He told Davis he was getting to know who Jesus Christ was and had accepted Jesus as his Savior.

The answer didn't mean much to Davis, since as the child of a California real estate developer, he grew up "doing anything but going to church on Sunday, although," he adds, "I did do Sunday school one summer when I was 5."

The two began to talk and when this younger brother began telling Davis about guys named Isaiah and Paul, Davis rearranged his schedule so he could take his break with the man and hear more stories about people in the Bible.

Davis was heavy into biking -- he got his first Harley-Davidson right after high school -- and was participating in mandatory runs for his biker club. "They had some evangelist there," he remembers.

When the evangelist said, "Someone here needs to know the Lord," Davis was among about 25 bikers who made professions of faith in Christ.

"My whole life changed," Davis says. He left the woman he was living with -- "The Lord opened my eyes" -- and not long after that he "literally walked out of that life."

The only thing he didn't leave behind was his love for motorcycles. He found a church that welcomed him, but wanted him to change. "You know, cut the hair, get rid of the bikes."

Davis questioned that. Why does it make a difference? When one church member told him he wasn't putting forth the proper image for the church, Davis left.

"I didn't leave the Lord, but I was sure upset with his people," he says.

He tried other churches, but felt that his bike was a detriment to the way people saw him. Eventually, he found a Bible-teaching church where he was generally well accepted.

"I know I looked kind of tough riding the bike, but the Lord just didn't take it away," he says.

Then in 1994 Davis met with Rick Ferguson, pastor of Riverside Baptist Church in Denver. "We needed to find someone who understands bikers," Ferguson shared with Davis, to start an outreach to them. "That was me," Davis discovered.

He started a weekly Saturday night Bible study in his home that grew to about 25-30 bikers. He also began attending biker shows and rallies with his wife, Diana.

At the first biker show they attended, a girl stripped her clothes off right in front of them. "Diana wasn't convinced this is where we were supposed to be," Davis recalls. "She was a yuppie when I met her," he quips.

But the couple persevered until Davis' life took an abrupt change. In 1996, he lost his job as an insurance adjuster. In the midst of that change, Davis set up a Riverside church-sponsored biker rally.

Two weeks later he used that event -- about 100 bikers participated -- to start Church in the Wind.

It was a place where "people know that they don't have to cut the hair, cover the tattoos, but can come to Jesus as they are," Davis says. "Jesus will help clean up the rough parts, clean you up on the inside."

Today Church in the Wind, with Davis as pastor, has an average attendance of about 100 bikers every Friday night. (And Diana has her own motorcycle.)

"We meet on Friday since most biker events are on Saturdays and Sundays. That means we're available to be at the major events and share the Lord with people," Davis explains.

The church also sponsors an annual Riverside Biker's Rally on the fourth Sunday in July. They play biker games in the church parking lot -- like "Road Kill Toss" in which the driver rides as slowly as he can so the passenger can heave a stuffed animal in a garbage can as they pass by. Then the church feeds everyone a free steak lunch.

At Church in the Wind, Davis hopes to give the biker community what he found at Riverside: a place that understands grace, accepting people as they are.

"You know, we're all saved by grace," he says.

Reprinted from the Winter 2000 issue of Church Planting & Evangelism Today, published by the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board.

Additional photo posted in the BP Photo Library. Photo title: HEAVEN'S ANGELS.
-------------------------------------------------------------------- EDITORS' NOTE by Staff Date: April 12, 2000 - Wednesday In the BP story, "Pete & Jo Ann Butler honored for helping students 'find their voices,'" dated 4/11/00, please add the following sentence to the end of the story:

Individuals who wish to contribute to the music scholarship honoring the Butlers may contact Bill Foil at MBTS, 5001 N. Oak Trafficway, Kansas City, MO 64118.

Thanks,
Baptist Press